Remove the whole leaf branch back to the stem. I prefer to cut. Sharp pruner. Bend and break often strips skin off the main stem or results in more breaks in near by branches.

I've read that removing them will direct more plant engery toward making tomatoes... instead of leaves.

That remains to be seen and is highly debatable so don't get carried away. It is one thing to remove damaged or old leaves but totally another thing to strip off healthy leaves. They are after all the source of the plant's energy.

Dave

Dave, got it. Thanks!
By "stem" I believe you mean back to the main stalk, yes? Or do you mean only the leaf stem itself, which shoots off from the stem that shoots from the stalk?
I hope you know what I mean...lol.

Why counld't I remember the word "branch?"

I've always pinched or snapped off leafs and branches with never an ill effect. If you are afraid of harming your plants you might use scissors.

Many people, myself included, remove everything below the lowest fruit truss. This will help keep leafs off the soil which can be the source of many diseases. This also allows better air circulation which is also beneficial for preventing disease.

As far as providing more energy for fruit production, maybe. It depends on what you are removing. If you are removing healthy, established leafs you will be removing valuable solar energy pumps from the plant. Lower, yellowing leafs are pretty much useless solar panels.

However, if you are removing suckers you will be removing new branching vines which call upon the plant to spend some of its energy to support their growth. In some growing zones with long seasons it may be desireable to allow these branching vines to grow because they will eventually produce tomatoes.

In zones with short growing seasons like mine (zone 5) I find that it is best to remove most (not all) of these sucker-vines. If I allow all sucker-vines to grow they simply do not have enough time and shared energy to grow and produce much, if anything.

Too many branching vines (suckers) divert precious energy from the main vine(s) where the most advanced growth offers the best promise of mature fruit before the dreaded frost.

In my climate I find that overall production is best when I allow only 2 sucker-vines (in addition to the main vine) to grow.

I have grown tomatoes in grow bags for about five years and every year with disappointing results UNTIL last summer when I cut each grow bag in half and opened the halves like pots with one tomatoe in each AND followed the advice of two friends who are experienced veg growers . That is to remove most of the leaves over time by bending each 'branch ' upwards until it snaps off soon after the trusses form. I then had these naked trees with foliage at the top! I had an absolutely bumper crop of large tomatoes all of which ripened.

Ask any wine grower. They regularly remove leaves near each bunch of grapes to get bigger and more juicy fruit.

The theory is that the plant feels it's being attacked so it puts all it's energy into REPRODUCING itself with more seeds within the fruit!

Incidentally WHY do supermarkets sell SEEDLESS GRAPES????? WE pay a fortune for supplements containg grape SEED EXTRACT because it is so rich in vitanmin B17 which is powerful against cancer. AND why do so many chefs advise you to skin and de-seed your tomatoes in recipes? The most nutritious bits are just under the skin and in the seed. We eat EVERYTHING!

Here is a link that might be useful: Richard Avon's Blog